Raphael Wallfisch

Cellist Raphael Wallfisch has a large repertory, especially strong on British composers, but not at all limited to them. He has made numerous recordings for Chandos and other labels. Wallfisch was born in London on June 15, 1953. His father, Peter Wallfisch, was a pianist, and his mother, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, was a notable cellist. Raphael began his musical studies on the violin and piano but switched to the cello at eight after hearing a concert by cellist Zara Nelsova. Wallfisch studied as a teen with Amaryllis Fleming and for a year with Amadeo Baldovino in Italy. He attended the Royal Academy of Music from 1970 to 1973, studying with Derek Simpson. Wallfisch moved to California for further studies with Gregor Piatigorsky, who arranged for him to perform in private recitals with violinist Jascha Heifetz. In 1977, Wallfisch took first prize at the Gaspar Cassadó International Cello Competition in Florence, Italy, and soon after that, he launched what quickly became an international career. In the 1980s and early '90s, he played in a duet with his father, Peter. Wallfisch's recording career began in the LP era on the Chandos label; among his early albums was a 1982 release devoted to Samuel Barber's Cello Concerto and Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 107. Wallfisch's concert career has been international. He has appeared with virtually all of the major British orchestras and on the European continent with such major ensembles as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, and the Bergen Philharmonic. He has performed in the U.S. with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Minnesota Orchestra and farther abroad with the Sydney Symphony, New Zealand Symphony, and Singapore Symphony, as well as other groups. Wallfisch performs as part of the Amici della Musica, which he founded, and the Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch with Hagai Shaham (violin) and Arnon Erez (piano); the latter group performed the complete Beethoven trios at Wigmore Hall in 2020. In addition to Chandos, he has recorded for Naxos (a complete cycle of the Vivaldi cello concertos), Nimbus, CPO, and many other labels. Wallfisch often performs at the Jewish Museum in Berlin and has recorded a series of works by Jewish refugee composers, "Voices in the Wilderness," for CPO. In 2023, he released the album Jonathan Dove: In Exile on Lyrita with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and baritone Simon Keenlyside. By that time, his catalog comprised some 100 recordings. ~ James Manheim, Rovi